The invention relates generally to the field of medical electronic device operation and maintenance. More particularly, the invention relates to a system and method for establishing predictive maintenance of such devices based on automatically updated transfer functions that correlate device health with device parameters.
There are many different medical electronic devices available for learning about and treating patient conditions in the medical field. For example, over recent decades, more sophisticated systems have been developed that include various types of electrical data acquisition which detect and record the operation of systems of the body and, to some extent, the response of such systems to situations and stimuli. Even more sophisticated systems have been developed to provide images of the body, including internal features which could only be viewed and analyzed through surgical intervention before their development. In general, such techniques have added to the vast array of resources available to physicians, and have greatly improved the quality of medical care.
However, medical devices, such as medical imaging systems, are generally complex. The complexity of medical devices makes identifying and correcting problems with the devices difficult and time-consuming. Further, servicing of medical devices tends to be reactive, after the medical device has failed, resulting in unscheduled downtime and added costs. In the case of medical imaging systems, for example, image quality may unexpectedly fall below acceptable levels, requiring an unscheduled shutdown of the medical imaging system. As appreciated by those skilled in the art, unscheduled downtime results in inefficient and costly operation of the medical system, costly repair, and inconvenience to patients, and so on. This impacts a variety of entities, such as medical providers, patients, equipment service providers, and so forth.
In an effort to avoid unexpected machine failures, a preventative maintenance schedule may be implemented where medical devices are serviced on a periodic basis. Such preventative services may include part replacement, component calibration, and so on, and may be primarily a function of the brand or type of medical device. Indeed, the period of maintenance and selected component replacement may be based on the device type and may not reflect the actual usage of the device and the environment in which the medical devices are deployed.
Consequently, periodic maintenance may result in over-servicing or under-servicing of the device. In either case, the result may be increased costs, a missed opportunity to improve the service delivery cost, and so on. Generally, devices are not utilized in the same way and/or are typically not stressed to the same extent. Thus, all devices do not benefit from service and same interval of service. Generic maintenance approaches may not consider the operational and maintenance history of the specific device, resulting in inappropriate service of the actual medical system. Preventative maintenance frequently results in unnecessary service of properly-functioning medical systems and devices. While preventative maintenance may reduce unscheduled downtime, the types and timing of services under a preventative maintenance schedule commonly do not match the needs of the medical system or device.
Unfortunately, is common for a maintenance schedule to be based on the type of modality or device without taking into account the device environment. In sum, such a maintenance schedule often calls for repair of the device where repair is not needed. Clearly, unnecessary and/or inappropriate services increase the cost to operate and maintain medical devices. A need, therefore, exists for a technique to identify the appropriate types and timing of services of a medical system or device. Servicing of the medical systems should deliver high quality of performance and uptime without unnecessary part replacement or costs.